Introducing lumps!

[Jolie]

Anyone got any tips on getting my ds to eat lumpy food? I tried him about a month ago, at 7 months but unfortunately it coincided with some serious teething - very sore looking swollen gums. Now when I try to give him any lumpy stuff he just starts crying inconsolably (he's normally very laid back and doesn't cry too much at all so I know he's very upset). I don't think his gums are still sore as those front teeth are through and he'll happily eat things like breadsticks. Have I put him off for life, and also will it really be a problem if he stays on smooth stuff much longer?

Personally I don't think puree at 7m is a problem. If your ds likes finger food, then he'll get used to lumps that way. Encourage lots of finger foods of different textures (messy!) while you spoon-feed him the smooth stuff and hopefully the two sorts will mix and he won't notice the transition.

Mine happily took purees at 4mths ish but getting them to take lumpy stuff at 7 mths was much more difficult. I used to do a smooth savoury and lumpy pud or vice versa at each meal. We got there in the end.

I just pureed les and less, until it was well cooked but lumpy. Sorry if that seems obvious and is not helping, but that's just what I did, and it worked for me. Try doing it gradually, and hopefully he won't notice it too much. I also found using my potato masher instead of liquidiser helped.

I find it is better to mash with a fork or potato masher rather than have'lumps' I find they gag on isolated lumps, like in commercial baby food jars, especially the peas!

I am getting a seven month onto firmer food at the moment, so I mash sweet potato and squash, fish etc with a fork and it seems to be okay. That way I can give the 16 month old the same, just less mashed.

Try something sweetish and tasty like bananas and custard (homemade stuff is less sugary) and mash the banana roughly with a fork. As banana is soft anyway lumps are easily dealt with and yummy factor could well overcome lumps stress.
BTW sore front gums should not pose a problem - as I understand it the 'chewing' is done by back gums/mashing with tingue not with front teeth anyway.